A Sampling of Clips for
August 17, 2005
*
UCSD faculty and staff may obtain a copy of an article by e-mailing
the University
Communications Office
Newsweek Calls
UCSD 'Hottest' Science College
San Diego Union-Tribune, Aug. 17 --
Newsweek magazine has named the University
of California, San Diego as the "hottest"
college in the country for studying science. But don't expect
this news to surprise UCSD faculty or administrators.
(Includes quote by Mark Thiemens, dean of the
Division of Physical Sciences) More
Overseas,
Mixed Results for Women in Computing
Chronicle of Higher Education, Aug.
17 -- Nurture, not nature, is to blame for the paucity of women
graduating from computer-science programs, according to a report
by Maria Charles, a professor of sociology
at the University of California, San Diego,
and Karen Bradley, an associate professor of sociology at Western
Washington University, that examines colleges and universities
in 21 countries. More
Solar System
Forensics
Astrobiology Magazine, Aug. 17 --
From chemical fingerprints preserved in primitive meteorites,
a UCSD research team headed by Mark
Thiemens, dean of the Division of Physical Sciences,
has determined that the collapsing gas cloud that eventually
became our sun was glowing brightly during the formation of
the first material in the solar system more than 4.5 billion
years ago. Their discovery, is detailed in a paper that appears
in the August 12 issue of Science. (Includes quote by Vinai
Rai, a UCSD postdoctoral fellow.)
More
Our Universe
is Safe - Until Next 'Big Bang'
The Irish Times, Aug. 17 -- Our universe
won't be extinguished like a candle in the distant future to
become a cold and barren place, as is believed by most cosmologists.
Its current expansion will slow, halt and then rebound inwards
to begin a new "big bang" cycle. So believes Geoffrey
Burbidge, a theoretical physicist turned cosmologist
at UCSD. More
Study: Nanotubes
May Replace Transistors
UPI, Aug. 16 -- California scientists
say they've found customized Y-shaped carbon nanotubes can compute
more efficiently than conventional transistors. The University
of California, San Diego and Clemson University researchers
say specially synthesized carbon nanotube structures exhibit
electronic properties that are improved over conventional transistors
used in computers. More
